Duolingo language learning app undergoes ‘biggest ever redesign’ to make it less stressful

(Duolingo)

Duolingo has undergone what it says is its biggest ever redesign, aimed at making the app less stressful to use.

The changes are a “compete overhaul”, the company says, and try to address some of the problems users have with the app.

Duolingo is now 10 years old and has become the most popular education app in the world, used by millions to learn a variety of languages. But many have suggested the app also stresses out the people who use it, which has led to its angry owl become something of a meme.

“We often heard from learners that they’re not sure whether they’re using Duolingo in the ‘correct’ or ‘best’ way,” a Duolingo spokesperson said. “This redesign will make the learning journey much easier and rewarding.”

The company said the changes had undergone “rigorous testing and analysis of app data” to ensure that the new design was more effective.

The redesign consists of a streamlined user interface, more explicit instructions to help guide learners, a new homepage that also gets a new look, as well as the addition of features such as Stories so that users can read and listen at the same time.

The new feature includes a strategy called “spaced repetition”, Duolingo said, which means that it is good to keep returning to a concept but then to gradually expand the time between practising it. That helps it stick in the memory, the app said.